Ms Egan, who grew up in Yanco and went to school in Leeton, said she mainly busked during the festival, but also participated in a songwriters' showcase gig.

"It was a chance for me to show off my original stuff to other songwriters," she said.

"This trip was really a networking trip for me.

"I got to participate in the parade and get my name out there."

While she's attended Tamworth many times before, the only other time she had performed was in 2008.

Ms Egan said she busked during that festival and received a great response.

"You have to get up there and get amongst it," she said.

This time, she was able to perform and also make a few sales of her album, Chasing Sound.

One of her original songs, The One More Song, was a finalist in the Tamworth Songwriters' Association 2010 National Country Songwriting Contest.

Ms Egan was still amazed at being named a finalist given she's only been writing her own songs for 14 months.

"I was absolutely stoked, particularly when I saw some of the other names," she said.

"Some have been writing for decades.

"It was an absolute honour. It was another outlet to get my stuff out there."

Ms Egan hoped the songwriting recognition would help other artists and the industry take her more seriously.

– The Land